Image by Sabrina Favoriti

The Cicalino, meaning “little grasshopper” is a well- known in North Rome, during the afternoons in fact it is often a place for high-school students to meet and chat while eating a pizza al taglio before deciding where to go.

In the evenings it can be a quiet place to sit out on their red tables and enjoy the pizza or arancini. If you are a sports fan, usually you can watch the games inside on their TV, with a beer to accompany your pizza.

These kind of pizza’s are not as thin as the ones that you will find in the restaurants. They serve square pizzas, with a variety of different toppings. One of my personal favorites is their potato topping pizza that I learned to love when I was one of those high-schoolers chatting away with friends.

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Il Cicalino | Bars, Restaurants (Pizza al taglio) | Piece of pizza € 3.50
Via Cassia 917/A | Cassia & Montemario | +390630362549
Tue – Sat 11:00 – 21:00

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Image by Sabrina Favoriti

Right next to my house there is a cute little restaurant where I go on my lazy days since it is so close! And it is definitely a fusion of Bavarian and Italian culture.

If you happen to stroll by on a Monday you will see it’s a pizzeria/pub. On other days you can try authentic Bavarian foods such as the Knoedel or pork cooked in Bavarian beer but do not shy away from their pizzas such as the Diavola or Margherita…they are delicious and summer nights are perfect to sit outside.

I like the atmosphere inside the place and the decoration with its wooden chairs with a hole carved in it and the tablecloths that give you a sense of being at home. It is also a good cozy place to watch sporting events while drinking one of their many choices of beer…Bavarian of course.

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Hofbrau Munchen Bermand | Bars, Snacks, Restaurants | Diavola Pizza € 7.00
Via di Grottarossa 123 | Cassia & Montemario | +390633253802
Mon – Sat 18:00 – 23:00

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Image by Sabrina Favoriti

Cesaretto wine bar is one of my favorite places in Rome and I am there so much that they know my name, and in fact a lot of the people that frequent the wine bar are regulars and it is in a side street off Via Del Corso. The environment is friendly and laid back but the food is upscale deliciousness.

I like going there year round, it is small but during the warmer months you can sit outside and watch people. Sometimes celebrities (national or international) pass by, and during the cooler months they have an area inside that is very cozy and warm.

My favorites to get there are the Carbonara pasta or the ravioli with a Fragolino wine to go with it, but most days they have a special that is not on the menu and go ahead and ask for it and most likely you will eat something delicious.

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Il Cesaretto | Bars, Restaurants (Carbonara) | Main meal € 12.00
Via Bocca di Leone 44a | City center | +390669380557
12:00 – 23:00 daily

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Image by Sabrina Favoriti

In one of the city center’s street there is a little restaurant called Porto di Ripetta. It is located in Via Ripetta which is a parallel street of Via del Corso. This street is not as busy as the more famous Via del Corso or even via del Babuino, and in fact it has fewer shops.

The restaurant has a real nice ambience to it and is particularly great for a dating evening, be it the first or fiftieth.

The restaurant is a little pricey but the food is delicious. One of my favorite dishes is an entrée: spaghetti with mussels and vegetables, definitely a must try. Or they have another great dish that is risotto with shrimp and apples (the apple gives it a a very interesting taste, perfect with the rice!) This plate is a little more expensive, about € 15.00, and since the portion is not too small I usually share the plate with someone.

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Porto di Ripetta | Restaurants (Italian) | Plate of spaghetti € 13.00
Via di Ripetta 250 | City center | +39063612376
Mon 20:00 – 23:00, Tue – Sat 12:00 – 23:00

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Image by Sabrina Favoriti

This is a pizzeria/restaurant located in North Rome, and it is a popular place for the younger crowd but you will also see families. I like to come here because it is close to my house and because the environment is really laid-back and fun, and if I decide to have dinner their Roman style pizzas are pretty good.

This is a modernly big restaurant an in fact it was established in only 2004, where you can either eat inside or outside in their enormous patio. You can start out with some appetizers such as “bruschette” or “crostini”, and then go with a pizza and beer.

On Sundays they have a special event (“Sunset time”) at 18;00 where you pay € 5.00 for the buffet and a drink.

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Sport Café | Restaurants (Pizza) | Spritz Drink € 7.00
Via Cassia 999 | Cassia & Montemario | +390630315041
Mon – Sat 20:00 – 01:00, Sun 18:00 – 00:00

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Image by Sabrina Favoriti

Il Peperone is a nice little restaurant in Via Veneto, which is one of the most famous streets in Rome, but usually untouchable for the prices. When I first went to Il Peperone with a friend of mine who had come to visit me from the States, I was impressed with the prices because they were affordable compared to their competitors.

My friend wanted to have coffee in Via Veneto but I said “I have a better idea: let’s have pizza!” and the food turned out to be great. The restaurant offers a variety of different dishes – mainly Roman typical foods but also a variety of general Italian ones. I like sitting outside as you can sit and relax and people watch in the heart of Rome.

My friend and I had a great time and the service was great, we ordered some delicious Roman appetizers and a pizza each. The owner Antonietta is very friendly and laid-back, she even said OK to taking a picture with me!

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Il Peperone restaurant | Snacks, Restaurants (Pizza) | Pizza Margheritia € 10.00
Via Veneto 97 | City center | +39064884593
Oct – Apr 12:00 – 16:00 & 18:00 – 00:00 daily | May – Sept 18:00 – 00:00 daily

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Image by Sabrina Favoriti

Zen is a Japanese restaurant in the city center and if you are a sushi lover this is a great place to go and hang out.

I love this place; I come here about once a month, as I am a sushi fanatic and I love the fact that this restaurant has a revolving bar, the plates rotate in front of you at the bar and you choose the ones that you like. The prices are by plate color (white, red, blue etc) which you have in front of you so you know how much you spend.

The only downside of this place has is the wait, however there is a nice waiting area in front with couches and you can order a glass of wine (or sake) and chat with your friends that you do not even realize that half an hour has passed before you get seated.

Even though you can request a table, the fun is to seat at the bar and choose your little sushi as they pass by on the table…my favorites are the tuna and salmon!

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ZEN | Restaurants (Japanese) | Red plate € 5.50
Via degli Scipioni 243-243A | City center | +39063213420
Sun – Mon 13:00 – 15:00, Tue – Sat 13:00 – 15:00 & 20:00 – 23:45

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Image by Fabio Fontanella

Dal Bersagliere is your typical, local, ‘garden-variety’ Roman pizza parlor, established in the ’50s and frequented by Romans.

Here, in the evening, near the closed stalls of the adjacent market, you will find a highly informal environment frequented by couples, friends and families alike. Dal Bersagliere is renowned to serve excellent, thin-crusted pizzas ‘Roman-style’. These are preceded (as is the custom here in Rome) by equally excellent fried antipasti, which are never too greasy and always served piping hot.

So, if you’d like to have a pizza “as the Romans do”, try Dal Bersagliere. Sit at one of the wooden tables outside -warmer climate permitting- wait for the waiter to quickly set your table with a paper tablecloth and then order: supplì, fiori di zucca, olive ascolane, verdure fritte, some bruschette (either simple or more elaborate) followed by whichever pizza best suits your tastes.

Most Italians have beer to accompany their pizza meal. I am told they also serve good meat but I never tried it. Dal Bersagliere is very close to the subway. Also, while there might be a line at times, don’t be put off, waiting times are never too long.

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Dal Bersagliere | Restaurants (Pizza) | Pizza € 15.00
Via Gino Capponi 16/22 | Appio Tuscolano | +3906789909
19:00 – 00:00 daily

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Image by Fabio Fontanella

When I first moved to Garbatella, my curiosity was piqued by the restaurant named Le Bistro close to my house.

All any passer-by can see from the street is a green door, which doesn’t reveal anything about the interior. There is no menu posted outside and rarely does one see people come and go from this place. It was becoming one of those enigmas, those queries one has about some places, until one day, I decide to go there with a friend.

Unlike other restaurants where you simply have to push the door to go in, here you have to ring a bell. After seconds, a smiling face opens the door to an interesting underworld -the restaurant is below street level- composed of a only a few tables, seating about 30 people. The décor is a mixture of a 50′s style and baroque. The ambiance is soft.

The menu is composed of a long list of highly enticing, unusual, mostly vegetarian dishes: balls of spiced chickpeas, avocado in vinaigrette, polenta slices with nut sauce, balls of ricotta and sage, onion soup, chestnut crepes with fresh cheese, grilled pecorino with honey, lettuce rolls with potato cream and blue cheese.

The dishes we select are kindly served by Daniela or Barbara, two sisters who, we find out, are the owners, waitresses, and sommeliers of the place. Their mom and dad are the cooks in the kitchen and concoct dishes according to what the season has to offer. Great evening, great experience.

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Le Bistro | Restaurants (Vegetarian) | Meal € 35.00
Via delle Sette Chiese 170 | Testaccio & Ostiense | +39065128991
Mon – Sat 12:20 – 14:30,& 20:00 – 23:30

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Image by Annalaura D'Errico

The sound of my Mac’s keyboard. The sound of a Harley engine. Some sounds are just clearly distinctive and should be protected by copyright laws. This could apply to the sound of the tossing of tonnarelli Cacio & Pepe at Felice’s. Indeed, when the waiter brings you your Cacio & Pepe pasta, he will toss it with the cheese over and over until everything is melted together.

Now, that sound, the sound of the spoons tossing over and over the pasta until everything is “organic” – that just simply is sublime! At least for me, since I know what pleasure will ensue when eating the dish. Once familiar with it, there will be no difference between you and Pavlov’s dog. Just the sound will do. So, here’s one reason to visit this great little restaurant.

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Da Felice a Testaccio | Restaurants (Italian/Roman) | Dinner from € 30
Via Mastro Giorgio 29 | Testaccio & Ostiense | +39065746800
Mon – Sat 12:30 – 15:00 & 20:00 – 23:30, Sun 12:30 – 15:00

Copyrights Spotted by Locals Rome